bengals playoffs – Syndication Server

All Bengals fans want for Christmas is…a Steelers win?

The Bengals need an assist from the Steelers on Christmas day to strengthen their playoff chances.

How wacky has this season been for the Cincinnati Bengals?

They enter Week 17 and the Christmas Day slate needing to get some help from the Pittsburgh Steelers to boost their playoff chances.

Those Steelers happen to play the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas and the Bengals would prefer if those Chiefs have something to play for in the final week of the season (the AFC’s top seed).

As a refresher, the Bengals need the following to happen to make the playoffs:

Win out
Dolphins and Colts lose at least one of their final games
Broncos lose out

That last point is the idea here on Christmas Day. If the Chiefs beat the Steelers and rest their starters in their Week 18 matchup against Denver, the Broncos could roll, win and eliminate the Bengals.

In an ideal scenario, the Steelers beat the Chiefs on Wednesday, then Kansas City goes all-out in Week 18, assuring the Broncos lose out.

Granted, given the gap between now and a post-bye playoff game, perhaps the Chiefs would play starters in Week 18 against the Broncos either way.

But this is about setting up the best possible Week 18 for a Bengals team looking to sneak into the playoffs. They need to keep winning, which means proving themselves against the Broncos and then Steelers to close the season.

The other ideal outcomes include Dolphins and Colts losses, plus the Steelers throwing an assist to provide the highest possible chance of the Broncos losing out, too.

Weird…but that’s the 2024 Bengals, folks.

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Joe Burrow says what everyone is thinking about Bengals in playoffs

Joe Burrow is right…but the Bengals have to get into the playoffs first.

Right now, the Cincinnati Bengals look like a threat.

Given the playoff-clinching and elimination scenarios, the Bengals are an extreme longshot to make the playoffs. But if they make it? They feel like this year’s team that nobody wants to play.

Joe Burrow would agree, as captured by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer:

So, late Sunday afternoon, after another one of those games where it looked like Burrow could do whatever he wanted, I asked the quarterback a question I figured I probably knew the answer to: Whether he thought the Bengals would be dangerous if they could somehow, after all that’s gotten them this year, find a way back into the playoffs for the first time since losing that conference championship game in Kansas City.

“I think everybody knows the answer to that,” he says.

Indeed. Burrow is playing at an MVP level, completing 68.9 percent of his passes with 4,229 yards and 39 touchdowns against eight interceptions.

Burrow’s Bengals have won three in a row while he keeps on playing at perhaps the highest level of his career to date. During this, the defense has enjoyed a mini-resurgence, in part due to easy opponents and in part due to the coaches changing things up.

Much has to go right for the Bengals to sneak into the playoffs. But if they make it, well, betting against Burrow might not be a good idea.

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Week 17 win for Bengals guarantees playoff-clinching scenario in Week 18

Here’s what needs to happen for the Bengals to sneak into the playoffs.

It’s once again win or go home for the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17 when the Denver Broncos come to town on Saturday. The good news for the Bengals is that if they win, they cannot be eliminated. Period. No other result in Week 17 can knock them out.

That means that if the Bengals win on Saturday, they will have a playoff-clinching scenario in Week 18, something that may have seemed unfathomable after the Bengals fell to 4-8 following their 44-38 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

This is partly why it was more beneficial for the Bengals to have the Broncos lose on Thursday night against the Los Angeles Chargers. A Denver win would have made the path much more difficult for the Bengals. The path is still a little murky, though the Bengals are up to almost 15 percent to make the playoffs, per ESPN’s Football Power Index.

The Bengals have just one path to the playoffs. That’s it. That path is as follows:

1. Beat Denver Week 17
2. Beat Pittsburgh Week 18
3. Denver loses to Kansas City Week 18
4. Indianapolis loses one of their final two (at Giants, vs. Jaguars)
5. Miami loses one of their final two (at Browns, at Jets)

If all that happens, the Bengals would land the No. 7 seed and likely head to Buffalo on Wild Card Weekend. Another Joe Burrow vs. Josh Allen matchup? Sign us up.

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AFC Playoff Picture: Bengals keep playoff hopes alive with big win over Browns

Where the Bengals sit in playoff standings and what they need to clinch a spot.

The Cincinnati Bengals did exactly what they needed to do in Week 16, take care of the Cleveland Browns. Joe Burrow threw three touchdown passes and Ja’Marr Chase and Chase Brown each had almost 100 yards in Cincinnati’s 24-6 win over Cleveland.

The win puts the Bengals at 7-8 and still alive in the AFC playoff picture. A huge game awaits on Saturday when the 9-6 Denver Broncos come to town. The Bengals need to win to stay alive.

They then would need the Broncos to lose to the Chiefs in Week 18, but the Chiefs may have the No. 1 seed wrapped up by then, meaning they could rest their starters in Week 18. They may even clinch the top seed before the Bengals and Broncos play on Saturday — the Chiefs clinch the top seed with a win Wednesday over the Steelers.

The Bengals also still need both the Colts and Dolphins to lose a game as both scored victories in Week 16 to keep their own playoff hopes alive. The Colts visit the 2-13 Giants while the Dolphins head to Cleveland to face the Browns. In Week 18, the Colts host the Jaguars and the Dolphins visit the Jets.

One step at a time for the Bengals. The next step is knocking off the Broncos on Saturday.

AFC Playoff Standings

1. y-Kansas City Chiefs 14-1
2. y-Buffalo Bills 12-3
3. x-Pittsburgh Steelers 10-5
4. y-Houston Texans 9-6
5. x-Baltimore Ravens 10-5
6. Los Angeles Chargers 9-6
7. Denver Broncos 9-6

8. Indianapolis Colts 7-8
9. Miami Dolphins 7-8
10. Cincinnati Bengals 7-8

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Why Broncos losing Thursday was more beneficial for Bengals

The Bengals’ playoff chances got a boost from other teams.

The Cincinnati Bengals are in a must-win situation Sunday against the Cleveland Browns. If they don’t, they are eliminated from playoff contention with two games remaining in the season.

The Bengals also need help elsewhere to sneak into the playoffs. Part of that help entering the week was needing the loser of Thursday’s game between the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers to then lose their final two games.

From a mathematical perspective, it didn’t matter which team lost. But if there was a preferred team to lose Thursday, it was the Broncos. Fortunately for the Bengals, that scenario played out Thursday in L.A.

The Bengals now have a chance to at least control their destiny toward having a playoff-clinching scenario in Week 18 by winning their next two games. That’s because they have the Broncos coming to town on Saturday.

The Bengals do need the Colts and Dolphins to each lose a game as well, but even if they both win their next two, the Bengals would still be alive heading into Week 18 with wins over the Browns and Broncos.

Had the Chargers lost, the Bengals road would have been much tougher. They’d be relying on the 3-11 New England Patriots and 2-12 Las Vegas Raiders to both beat the Chargers in the last two weeks.

Bengals fans would certainly take the former option with the Broncos.

The Broncos do finish the season against the Chiefs, who could potentially have the No. 1 seed locked up by then. One more win or one Bills loss secures the bye for Kansas City.

While it’s unlikely the Patriots beat the Bills Sunday, the Chiefs can wrap it up on Christmas if they defeat the Steelers. If the Chiefs clinch the bye, they can rest their starters against Denver. Not what the Bengals want to see.

Still, that whole scenario is more plausible than the Patriots and Raiders both beating the Chargers. The Chargers would clinch a playoff spot Sunday if both the Colts and Dolphins lose, but they likely wouldn’t rest their starters two weeks in a row.

Ultimately, the Bengals have to take care of their own business after missed opportunities throughout the season. But they’re not out of it yet and their chances were helped, even if ever so slightly, Thursday by Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers.

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Cincinnati Bengals gear featuring Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, NFLPA officially licensed gear by BreakingT

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Get your Joe Burrow and CJ Uzomah Bengals gear as we make our run to Super Bowl 56, buy it here!

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You can check out the whole Cincinnati Collection here or click on any photo to order yours before they sell out, get yours from BreakingT.